Everything Would Be Different
by Carol Molliniere
Summary: "I wish that Pitch Black, the Nightmare King, never ever existed."
1. Prologue

**Everything Would Be Different**

**By: Carol Molliniere**

**A/N: So, another ROTG/GOC fanfiction. I am currently obsessed with this fandom, and I apologize. But the next chapter of "Yeshuah and the Twelve Disciples" **_**will**_** come out. Just not yet. (I'm working out all the plot holes.)**

**Disclaimer: I don't own Rise of the Guardians/Guardians of Childhood.**

* * *

_Once, a little girl was suffering. Everything was going wrong in her life. Her parents were gone, there was war, and she hated every second of it. She walked up to the windowsill of her room to think about everything that was going on in her life._

_Out of the black of the night came a star. She perked up. A shooting star! That was rare, for one rarely ever came where she was. The little girl clasped her hands together and began to think of what she would wish for._

_Then she had it._

"I wish that Pitch Black, the Nightmare King, never ever existed."

_Thinking good of this, she went back to her bed and fell into a deep sleep._

* * *

_With that one wish, time began to rewrite itself. The sands in the hourglasses moved back, moved back to destroy and create new moments in time. Moments that would change the history of the Guardians as we know them._

_Or rather, change the history of ordinary people._

_With this wish, the little girl unknowingly caused the Guardians to cease to exist._

Lady Pitchiner was killed by a Fearling when she was six months pregnant with a boy, who should have been called Kozmotis had he not died with his mother.

_Time began to flow again. But this time, more different than ever before._

_The Golden Age changed. The lives of people changed._

_The House of Lunanoff was expecting a baby boy, to be the prince. He was born without any delay, beloved by all the Constellations the way his parents were._

_And it is here that our story begins._


	2. Chapter 1: MiM and Nightlight

**(A/N: Alright, next chapter we go! This is based on my limited knowledge of the books, so this may or may not be in the canon. Whatever. I'm just gonna go with it.**

**And I still don't own this thing.)**

* * *

_**MiM & Nightlight**_

"Now, young Prince Lunanoff," the tutor said to the five-year old, pointing a ruler to the board in front of him, which was full of writing. "Listed here are the good manners you should perform when in public and when guests are around."

Seeing the boy slouched over and resting his elbows on the table, the tutor came over and smacked the table, making Prince Lunanoff jump in surprise. "Sitting up straight is one of them," the tutor said as he walked back to the board.

The young boy, on the other hand, turned to his guard Nightlight. "It's boring here, Nightlight," he whined. "Can we go somewhere else and play?"

"Not right now," the spectral boy shushed him, "we still have to finish your classes." Upon hearing this, he groaned loudly in annoyance, and his teacher rolled his eyes before slamming the ruler on the board to get the prince to pay attention.

"In case you haven't noticed, Prince Lunanoff, complaining loudly in front of others is also bad manners." Having thus won over the argument before it even began, the lesson continued, and Prince Lunanoff scowled before blowing his single flick of hair off his face.

Looking out the window for only a second, he wondered if there was something more he could do with his life other than sit in front of a board and listen to his tutor drone on and on about what he should and shouldn't do.

* * *

_Little did the little Lunanoff know how much the children of a certain faraway planet needed the protection against Nightmare Men and Fearlings. They were not skilled, and they did not have the proper technology to guide them in the war._

_The children of that faraway world needed a nightlight, one to keep them safe when their star did not shine in the sky._

_Because of one girl's wish, that nightlight was not in their reach._

_Prince Lunanoff should have grown up to become the Man in the Moon. Instead, he was just another ruler in the House of Lunanoff._

_Nightlight should have been a Guardian, teaching children how to be brave when they were afraid. Instead, he was just another speck in the eye of time._

_This time shifts and moves on to show us the next story of one individual affected by this change in history. Let us walk forward and see…_


	3. Chapter 2: Bunnymund

**(A/N: Glad to see about a few of you are actually reading my not-so-good fanfiction. The fanfiction of a minor author on the site. (I have issues.)**

**Anyway, here's the next chapter of "Everything Would Be Different".)**

**Disclaimer: I still don't own anything except for Astra and the alternate universes. Will Joyce and Dreamworks can take credit.**

_**E. Aster Bunnymund**_

* * *

"Aster!" a voice called from inside the building. His ears twitched, and he looked back into the house.

"Why? What is it, Astra?" he asked, hopping into the house and finding his new wife hunched over a brew that she was probably making.

"I've done it!" she said merrily. "I've found the cure for my infertility problem!" Aster blinked for a few times, his green eyes wide under his emerald glasses. Then he beamed. "Really?"

"Yes, really!" She pulled the ladle out of the pot, revealing a purple-colored liquid that had about the same viscosity of honey. "It smells strange, and probably tastes even worse, but it's bound to work."

"Would you like some of my 'special' chocolate to go with that?" He whispered into her ear, and it twitched in anticipation. Astra giggled. "Don't overdo it; we know what your chocolate can do to us Pookas."

"Who knows, maybe it'll bring some special advantages tonight." They both smiled at each other, and then kissed.

* * *

_Little did they know that the children of a certain world that was under siege by darkness needed hope. They needed healing and the chocolate and the eggs that only a certain rabbit could bring._

_Even if it meant he had no one else to give it to._

_E. Aster Bunnymund was supposed to be a Guardian, fighting the darkness that covered the far planet and bringing hope with the coming of spring._

_Instead he was here, with his wife. Perhaps he would be happier in this timeline, maybe he would be happier in the other. One can never know for sure, not even the little girl who made the fateful wish._

_Maybe it was for the best._

* * *

_We fly away from the Golden Age worlds, and move forward in time. We move to that planet in distress, the one we call Earth. Many of its greatest heroes came from Earth itself. But many of them never rose because they never knew what they could do._


	4. Chapter 3: North

**(A/N: And here's the next chapter featuring – you guessed it!**

**You didn't guess? Aw, whatever. I'm pretty sure someone out there knows who's up now.)**

**Disclaimer: The only thing I own is the fictional country of Arrenia and the new guy. (Not like he's important.)**

* * *

_**Nicholas St. North**_

The bandit raced along the rooftops, along with his crew. They soundlessly moved in the night, no one in the castle seeing any of them, no matter how slowly the oldest of the bandits moved or how much Gregor of the Mighty Stink stunk. (That could be a bother when raiding places sometimes.)

"Alright, men," Nicholas said, pointing to the chimney. "We go in through here, and be as quiet as possible. Two of us will stand guard while the rest of us stuff as much treasure as we can in our sacks. When we are done, we will sneak out as quietly as possible." Here he shot a glare at Gregor. "You, try not to stink too much."

"But, North," one of them, a new bandit, asked, "what if we get caught?"

"Nonsense, lad," he said as he jumped into the chimney. "We'll never get caught! I'm Nicholas St. North, the Bandit King!"

Moments later the morning saw the loss of as much precious treasure as you could find in the castle of the country of Arrenia. As for our bandit friend North, he was riding away with his men, already preparing for the next adventure.

* * *

_Little did he know, that there were monsters lurking in the darkness around him, spreading fear and discord. The children needed his wonder, his knack for seeing the good things in the plain, the lights in the trees and the magic in the air. They needed his joy in the world._

_Nicholas St. North was supposed to be a guardian who would create toys for children to let them know that there was someone there for them, watching over their happiness, even if he did bring them coal on Christmas because they were naughty._

_Instead, he was a reckless bandit, who was swept away in time and became insignificant after his death, and all that was of him was lost._

* * *

_So you still want to see what would happen for the others? Very well. I will treat you to everything that I can see, everything that happened after the little girl made her wish._


	5. Chapter 4: Katherine and Ombric

**(A/N: I am now reaching the stage where I may not be able to update regularly, running out of ideas and such, and other stories to finish. Here's all I got on this fanfic for now.**

**I don't need to remind you that I don't own ROTG/GOC, do I?)**

_**Katherine and Ombric**_

* * *

A young lady walked around Big Root, looking for her caretaker to ask him about one of the spells he had in his books. She also wanted him to look at some of the sketches she had made, but as busy as he was with fighting off the Fearlings and Nightmare Men coming to Earth, she wasn't so sure he should see them.

"Ombric?" Katherine asked, knocking on his door. "Ombric, are you in there?"

No answer. Just light breathing.

She turned the knob, surprised to see that it was open, and slowly moved the door so that she could see more of his room.

The first thing she saw was that it was littered with paper. Paper and parchment, all containing spells to ward off the dark monsters. She couldn't understand most of the languages they were in, but it was enough to make Katherine realize that he was working hard to keep their little haven, Santoff Claussen, safe, along with all the people that lived there.

The wizard himself was dozing off underneath the papers, the larger ones pulled on him like a blanket. He wasn't in his usual globe-perch, and so the owls hooted for Katherine to put him there, where he could sleep more comfortably.

She pushed the papers off of Ombric, and carried him, straining at first, but then realized that he was lighter and she soon put him on his perch with a little more ease than the few months ago. The panels of the globe closed, with each owl giving a hoot. Ombric was still sound asleep by the time the last panel closed.

She sighed and began to pick up the papers on the floor, clearing them away, and putting the books back on their shelves.

Didn't Ombric realize how much his age was getting to him?

* * *

_This time, Katherine and Ombric knew about the threat to their planet. They knew that everything was falling apart, and that the people of Santoff Claussen would be completely helpless the moment Ombric passed away because Katherine didn't have access to enough spells, and they would be suffering long before she knew enough._

_If only they had more time…_

_The children of Santoff Claussen needed a few stories and rhymes to light up their worlds and bring a smile to their small faces. They needed the time to stay a child when they were children._

_Katherine was supposed to be a guardian, singing and talking with the children and giving them her drawings and fantastical tales and whimsical melodies._

_Ombric was supposed to be a guardian, teaching children and giving them tricks to lighten their hearts and stop time for them._

_Instead they were here, fighting a war._


	6. Chapter 5: Tooth

**(A/N: Just so you know, I haven't read any of the books except for North's book. Most of my information comes from the internet. This information here comes from the ROTG Wiki. So, I apologize if I get anything wrong.**

**Yeah, I want the books.)**

**I don't own anything except for the alternative ending.)**

* * *

_**Toothiana**_

The Monkey King killed her parents for his selfish motives. For revenge.

It was all his idea.

Her eyes widened, but not after a bow and arrow were pointed at her heart.

She closed her eyes and held her ruby box close to her chest.

Toothiana remembered her parents. How dear they were to her. How they would play with her as a child, how they took care of her and protected her and comforted her and sacrificed themselves for her. She wanted nothing more than for them to be with her, to wake her up and tell her this was all a bad dream.

It wasn't.

"I'm sorry, Mother, I'm sorry, Father," she said softly to herself.

Her amethyst eyes fell on the empty dark sky as she was shot.

* * *

_The children of the village mourned the loss of a pure, bright spirit. They wished that it would never have happened; that their parents never found out that their friend Tooth was taking their teeth in exchange for a gift. They loved her and wanted her back, keeping the rest of their baby teeth to preserve their memories of her forever._

_Toothiana was supposed to be a guardian who would keep and protect these memories for them, and many more of their children and grandchildren, of their descendants to come._

_Instead, she was shot dead by a man who wanted revenge because all of the teeth in the ruby box belonged to her._

* * *

**(A/N: I will never write something like this again without lack of knowledge. I swear, I'm gonna go out and find the books, hard as they are to find where I live…)**


	7. Chapter 6: Jack

**(A/N: Here, there is something I actually have a bit of knowledge about. You'll probably enjoy reading this. Or maybe it'll give you feels. I know. It gave me some too with the alternative ending that I only own. Nothing else.)**

* * *

_**Jackson Overland Frost**_

"Jack, I'm scared."

He looked on as the ice cracked under both their feet.

"Yeah, I know, I know, but…you're not gonna fall in. We're gonna have a little fun instead!"

"No, we're not!" Mary Overland screamed at her older brother.

She knew it was her fault that they were in this precarious situation. If only she hadn't wanted to skate so badly; she didn't even give him time to check if the ice would be thick enough to hold their weight!

"Would I trick you?"

"Yes! You always play tricks!"

Jackson Overland winced at the remark. Yes, he knew that was true, but he had to find an opening to get her off the ice. He had to, or else he would never live with himself.

"Alright, alright, but not this time," he reassured her. "This time, I promise, you're gonna be…" he found that he was breathless, and so was Mary, "…you're gonna be fine.

"You just have to believe in me."

Mary watched him with wide eyes, hoping that what he said would come true.

…It would, right?

* * *

_In the end, Mary Overland had survived, all because of the act of bravery of her brother that would never go forgotten. But Jackson Overland was not so lucky. Almost right after he saved her, he fell in, and the last thing he saw before his brown eyes closed forever was an empty sky._

_No Moon to greet him with its light._

_Jack was supposed to become a guardian who played with snow and frost and gave children joy with every winter they had._

_Instead, he was drowned in a cold lake, leaving his sister vulnerable against the monsters of the dark._


	8. Chapter 7: Jamie

**(A/N: Yes, I know he's not a Guardian…yet. But his life would obviously be affected if Pitch were not there, and he was just too cute/interesting for me to pass up.**

**Here comes the bonus chapter, featuring…)**

* * *

_**Jamie Bennett**_

"Jamie, it's far too dangerous to go outside at this time of hour!"

"Don't worry, Mom, I'm gonna be back by six, OK?"

"…Just come back before the sun sets!"

"OK, Mom!"

With that, Jamie set off to find more stardust. He had heard that stars were falling near and on Earth, and some of their dust landed on the planet. If he was lucky, there would be more in Burgess…

His little head peeked through the trees of the Burgess forest, and lo and behold, there was a little pile of stardust! Grinning, he ran over to the pile and started scooping up some into a tiny pouch. Feeling satisfied, he turned around – and found a pack of Fearlings surrounding him.

Jamie looked up and realized that it was getting dark; the sun was no longer in the sky. The Fearlings hissed and crept forward, wanting their next prey.

But the boy wouldn't have it. In a flash, he kicked the pile of stardust that he had left on the ground towards them, and they scampered off. A few of them assaulted him on the way home, but he threw stardust at them, and they left him alone about 10 meters from home.

"Jamie!" his little sister Sophie called, beaming as he stepped through the door like a valiant soldier coming back. "Hey, Soph," he said as he waved at her and set his pouch of stardust on the table which his mother was cleaning.

"Jamie!" she said, relieved that he had come back home safe, and hugged him. "You were gone for so long, and I was so worried about you!"

"It's alright, Mom, I'm fine, really," he said, and opened the pouch to empty the stardust in it into a small jar. They would use the stardust in the jar to keep themselves safe.

* * *

_Other families were not so lucky. Many of the fathers, mothers, and children perished while hunting for this miracle. There were only a few families left in Burgess, and without the father, the Bennetts were struggling to survive. Jamie could only hold on to the feeble hope that someday, people would find the technology to get rid of the monsters once and for all, and then finally they would be free._

_Jamie Bennett was supposed to be a little boy who was enjoying his childhood day by day, and giving others the trust that he himself had so much of._

_Instead here he was, fighting for his life, as well as his mother's and little sister's._


	9. End: Sandy's Wish

_The little girl looked upon this world and sighed sadly._

"_Why isn't there anyone to keep them safe? Why aren't there people who can and will fight the darkness and keep this blue and green planet from succumbing to the shadows?"_

"_Because you wished for it."_

_The little girl turned around to see someone walking towards her on the ground she was standing on, though he didn't seem to be affected by gravity as much as she was. The little man hopped towards her until her green eyes were meeting his golden ones._

"_Who are you?" she asked._

"I am Sanderson Mansnoozie, one of the last dreamweavers of the Golden Age."

_The little girl reached out to touch him, and then said, "What happened to the other ones?"_

"_Too afraid to fly." Sanderson answered simply. "They don't want to collect wishes because of the impending darkness this Pitch is bringing; Pitch would kill them if they were captured by him." He looked down at the ground, putting his hands on his ears and closing his eyes as the pictures of Earth were suddenly replaced by images of shooting stars falling onto meteors, crashing into planets, and being thrown into black holes. She looked on as he shivered._

"_Sandy is scared too…"_

"_Then why are you still here?"_

"_I must show people that there's something worth fighting for, even when you're afraid." He said. "I want to bring dreams to people, and give them hope, have them marvel at the wonders I bring them. I have them remember sweet memories and give them faith when they need it the most, and who knows, maybe they'll have fun and gain courage. Maybe they'll tell wonderful stories of what I show them. And they will know how to trust, know that there is someone watching over them and protecting them, a Guardian forevermore."_

_He looked back at her, this time smiling. "What are you going to do about this?"_

"…_Maybe I can wish Pitch back into existence," the little girl decided._

"_After all, he is my father."_

_Sandy smiled at the little girl._

"_You can do something for this planet in need." He held up his pinky. "Promise?"_

_She raised her own and entwined it with his. "Promise."_

* * *

When the little girl woke up, she had decided. She would help fend off the darkness that was only beginning to threaten Earth. Her resolve firm, she began to make plans.

The day this girl's plans were finalized years later, the day she came to our planet and became Mother Nature was the same day Sanderson Mansnoozie, soon to become the Sandman, crashed on Earth.

And their story was only beginning, just as the Moon Clipper came to our galaxy.

Prince Lunanoff – the boy soon to become the Man in the Moon – and Nightlight were on that same ship, getting away from Pitch, and the situation ultimately ended with the Moon coming to Earth and gaining its nightlight.

Bunnymund's species was destroyed, and he came to Earth as well, bringing his chocolate and his eggs and his hope with him.

North was led by a moonbeam to Santoff Claussen, a peaceful place where Katherine and Ombric were going to need help.

Toothiana was suddenly out of her cage, with her new assistants that looked almost like her fighting for their mother; and all because one tooth didn't belong to her.

Jack was met with the light of the Moon as soon as he plunged into the freezing waters, and was made the Spirit of Winter, being able to protect his little sister and her descendants – even if he didn't remember her.

Jamie was the last flickering light when all hope seemed lost for the Guardians, and as long as there was one light, the others could be rekindled.

And as for Sandy? Sandy got his wish.

But as for the fateful wish of the little girl, its tale ends.

* * *

**If any of you are wondering why Sandy just gave MN a dream that says the future of an alternate universe of people that neither of them know, then take it as one of those "prophecy dreams" or something – sometimes Sandy doesn't create dreams himself; sometimes he just supplies the dreamsand and leaves the dreaming to us. As for Sandy appearing in her dream – it was because their subconscious linked up from the wish, and the dream-giver would like to explain some junk.**

**(Yeah, I'm lazy and uncreative and unreasonable with my reasons.)**

**Headcanon #1: Like in Adventure Time (by Pen Ward), prophecy dreams occur from time to time in the Golden Age.**

**Just so you know, Mother Nature isn't as young as she is implied to be – I'm thinking she was around ten years old when Kozmotis turned to Pitch, and that the war with Pitch lasted longer than you think. That and she must have been eleven by the time this fic starts.**

**So, enough with headcanons. I hope you liked the lovely little thing!**


	10. Extra: The Moon Arrives

**(A/N: I'm back!**

**And with a bonus chapter, set in the wish-verse, for Jokermask18 who suggested this lovely idea! I made a few tweaks, so this fits in with Jamie's time.)**

* * *

All the peoples of the Constellations looked on with awe as the most beautiful craft of the Golden Age set sail.

This beautiful craft, called the Moon Clipper, was off on a mission to help a planet on the shoulder of Orion, a blue-and-green planet named Earth by its inhabitants. On this ship were some of the greatest fighters against darkness in the Golden Age, ready to take on the shadows almost consuming Earth.

The current rulers, from the House of Lunanoff, were along for the ride as well, because they wanted to see what it was like for those in the darker parts of the galaxies.

The Moon Clipper moved through the Milky Way, locating the star that Earth revolved around. Earth was one of the few planets without a natural satellite, and its blue-and-green sphere-like shape wasn't hard to miss. It had taken a few Earth years, but finally they were in our solar system.

Here, the current Tsar Lunar – who was the prince we had been introduced to – was shocked at all the shadows and darkness that was reigning in the planets. Many of them had attacked, but the crew and the passengers were able to keep them at bay. The battle in the asteroid belt was particularly nerve-wracking, and had left craters on the outer shell of the Moon Clipper.

At the end of that encounter, Tsarina Lunar had walked over to her husband, and had asked him if he wanted to carry on.

"Of course I should carry on," Tsar Lunar answered. "The people on Earth need us."

"But what if we get killed?"

"Then I'll find help."

"Where will you get help?"

"…From the Earth itself. If it's been able to stand for so long, even after being ravaged countless times by the Fearlings, then its inhabitants are stronger than what most think." He paced around the deck, thinking. "From what we know, they've already found out that stardust is a way to fend off the Fearlings. Now all we need to do is to help them make technology to fight them more efficiently, like what we have. After all, we have only so much time on this."

"Not to mention that we need an heir," Tsarina Lunar pointed out. His eyes widened slightly, and then he nodded. "Yes." He put his hands behind his back and stared out at the brilliance of the stars.

"We have to prepare the people of Earth for war."

* * *

Jamie Bennett tossed and turned in his bed, unable to sleep. It wasn't because he was afraid of the shadows that were currently creeping inside their house, in more ways than the nightlight in his room was shining on something and casting a shadow. It was because he felt that something was going to change. Something great would happen, and he felt that he was going to be a part of it.

He closed his eyes, ducked under his covers, and repeated his personal mantra.

"_I'm not afraid of the darkness. I believe in the light. I'm not afraid of the darkness. I believe in the light."_

Jamie clasped his hands together, willing the darkness away. Some of it seemed to slowly fade away, and it gave him more courage.

"_I'm not afraid of the darkness. I believe in the light. I'm not afraid of the darkness. I believe in the light."_

He needed these Fearlings to get out of his house. The boy felt that he was responsible for his family's safety – or at least what was left of them. He needed them to go away, leave him alone. He needed them to be scared of him.

"_I'm not afraid of the darkness."_

Jamie heard one of the Fearlings hiss. It was working.

"_I believe in the light."_

He felt it now, this was it. This was the night that everything would change.

Light seeped in his room, scaring away the Fearlings. But not just that, it extinguished some of them. Jamie looked up from his bed in awe. He knew that they were vulnerable to light, but only the Sun's light could do that to them…or was it that the sun wasn't the only fighter in the sky against darkness?

He slowly crept out of bed, towards the light, putting a hand in it. It wasn't as warm as the Sun, but it was bright, and it seemed to chase all the darkness away. Jamie looked at his window, and then gasped, running over for a better look.

There in the sky was a bright white orb. It was like a white glowing circle of cheese, and the boy could have sworn he saw a smile on the surface of the new satellite, a smile that said, _"I'll keep you safe."_

He stared at it, gaping.

Was it there for them…? Was it there to clear away the shadows at last?

Well, Jamie decided, they won't have to do it alone.

Before going to bed, he made it a point to collect as much stardust as he must.

This boy would become the first Guardian of Earth, and many others would soon follow.

* * *

**(A/N: Woo! I can finally close this fanfiction! This was hard to write, but you pulled me through. That and two weeks of vacation, but I'll take the blame for my absence.)**

**(Hope you enjoyed it!)**


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